FIFA considers holding next Club World Cup in winter

FIFA are having 'crazy' discussions about wanting to move the 2029 Club World Cup to Qatar and hold it in the winter.

FIFA has many "crazy" plans for the coming years - Photo: REUTERS

The 2025 Club World Cup, currently taking place in the United States, has been criticised for its organisation. Many have suggested that the players are exhausted after a long season. In particular, the fact that the tournament is being held in the US in the summer has caused many problems due to the weather.

Extreme heat and lightning storms have been an unwelcome feature of this year's tournament. Chelsea's round of 16 win over Benfica was halted for nearly two hours with four minutes remaining after a lightning strike near the stadium.

Not only this match, a series of other confrontations were also affected by bad weather, including Benfica vs Auckland City, Ulsan vs Mamelodi Sundowns, and Palmeiras vs Al Ahly.

Given these issues, FIFA continues to have bold ideas about the host country of the next tournament. Therefore, Qatar has emerged as a strong candidate to host the Club World Cup 2029.

FIFA wants the next Club World Cup to follow the 2022 World Cup in Qatar - Photo: REUTERS

According to The Guardian , Qatari officials held discussions with FIFA during the tournament in the US to express their interest.

If successful, the tournament would almost certainly be held in winter, similar to the 2022 World Cup. This would avoid the scorching heat of summer in the Gulf.

A huge advantage for Qatar is that all nine stadiums built for the 2022 World Cup are intact and ready for reuse. This not only significantly reduces infrastructure costs, but also minimizes travel for teams and fans.

This is a stark contrast to the tournament in the US, where teams have to fly constantly between 11 host cities.

However, if the 2029 Club World Cup is held in winter, it is likely to continue to receive many mixed opinions similar to the 2022 World Cup. It is not easy for tournaments to pause for a whole month for teams to compete.

In addition, the hosting in this Gulf country continues to raise many other issues such as human rights .

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THANH DINH

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/fifa-can-nhac-to-chuc-club-world-cup-tiep-theo-vao-mua-dong-20250630205237981.htm